Why there’s a lot to like with Thompson in fantasy
Detroit Pistons rookie Ausar Thompson has top-75 fantasy basketball value with tons of room to grow, asserting himself as a player fantasy managers must watch for years to come.
This edition of Pickups of the Day begins with a player rostered in more than 40% of Yahoo leagues, the threshold we like to stick to early in the season. The reason for Saddiq Bey’s inclusion is simple: Jalen Johnson has been sidelined by a fractured left wrist and will be re-evaluated in three to four weeks. As a result, Hawks coach Quin Snyder is down to De’Andre Hunter and Saddiq Bey as his options. Bey is the focus for this column, as he’s rostered in 50% of Yahoo leagues.
Sunday’s game in Boston was Atlanta’s first since Johnson’s injury, with the Celtics picking up the 113-103 victory. To say that Bey didn’t impress would be accurate, as he played 29 minutes and finished with seven points, eight rebounds, one assist, and one 3-pointer, shooting 3-of-7 from the field. But this isn’t a time for fantasy managers to panic, especially when considering the fact that Dejounte Murray shot 2-of-13 and scored six points. Bad games happen, and Bey will have time to bounce back.
Atlanta plays three games in Week 6, two of which will be played on the road against teams that, at a minimum, harbor ambitions of contending in the Eastern Conference (Cleveland and Milwaukee). Sandwiched in between those games is a matchup with the Spurs on Thursday. Bey will have opportunities; managers who had him rostered or added him in the aftermath of Johnson’s injury should not panic.
Let’s take a look at a few more top pickups from Sunday.
Patrick Williams (28%)
Cue the “Grand Theft Auto” meme, the “here we go again” one. With Alex Caruso (toe) sidelined, Williams was in the starting lineup for the second time in Chicago’s last three games. While the Bulls’ struggles continue, as they’ve lost four straight and seven of their previous eight games, Williams is in the midst of his best run of the season. Hitting double figures for a third consecutive game, he finished the 118-109 loss to the Nets with a season-high 20 points, four rebounds, and four 3-pointers. Should fantasy managers have faith in Williams to continue this run? Given the track record, probably not. But Caruso’s injury opened the door for Williams to step up, and he did, rewarding the managers who have him rostered.
Sam Hauser (17%)
The Celtics were without Jrue Holiday (ankle) and Kristaps Porzingis (calf) for Sunday’s game against the Hawks, which left open a spot in the starting lineup if you remove “sixth starter” Al Horford from the discussion. While Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla decided to start Dalano Banton, Hauser offered more significant potential to fantasy managers, and that’s how things played out. Hitting four 3-pointers, he finished with 12 points, four rebounds, and two assists in 32 minutes. Banton (8/5/1) wasn’t terrible, but the production needed to be more to justify streaming him, especially when he only played 19 minutes. Porzingis is expected to miss at least two more games. The schedule makes it challenging to hold Hauser for that entire stretch, but he could be a worthwhile pickup on those game nights (Tuesday vs. Chicago, Friday vs. Philadelphia).
David Roddy (2%)
The Grizzlies’ nightmare continued on Sunday, dropping to 0-8 at home with a blowout loss to the Timberwolves. And there was a noteworthy change to the rotation, with Roddy starting the second half ahead of the struggling Jacob Gilyard. Roddy played 28 minutes off the bench, finishing with 11 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two 3-pointers. Roddy may not move into the starting lineup anytime soon, as the Grizzlies need a point guard to take some of the playmaking pressure off of Desmond Bane. Still, it is easy to envision a scenario where his minutes increase.
Jordan Goodwin (1%)
The Suns had two holes to fill in their starting lineup for Sunday’s game against the Knicks, as Kevin Durant (foot) remained sidelined, and Grayson Allen (illness) was also ruled out. Keita Bates-Diop and Josh Okogie may have been Frank Vogel’s choices to start, and Goodwin outperformed both. He played 29 minutes, finishing with 14 points, seven rebounds, five assists, one steal, one block, and two 3-pointers, shooting 6-of-10 from the field in the 116-113 victory. The schedule doesn’t work in Goodwin’s favor from a fantasy standpoint, as the Suns don’t play again until Wednesday, but he should remain on the radar in deep leagues after this performance.
